Sean O'Malley thinks Aljamain Sterling is too 'insecure’ to move to 145-pound division (Video)

Earlier this year, Sean O'Malley knocked out then-135-pound champion Aljamain Sterling to become the new champion of the division. Before and after the fight Sterling had voiced his desire to head to the 145-pound division next, but O'Malley doesn't see that actually happening.

“He’ll probably go back down to ‘35, just because he’s insecure and he wants to be stronger and bigger than these guys,” O'Malley recently said on The MMA Hour. “Why else would he not fight at ‘45? It’s not like his skills aren’t there. His skills, he’s good. Not as good as me, but he’s good. You know what I mean? He could go up to ‘45, I think he’d do fine up there.”

Even though he doesn't think Sterling will make the move, he does think it's the best move for the former champion.

“I like Aljo, he’s a good dude. I really never said anything bad about him. I think if he goes up to ‘45, it’d be super interesting. I think there’s a lot of interesting fights up there at ‘45,” O’Malley said. “I think his weight gets big enough for that. You know, I’m probably 160 [pounds] right now, I probably [won’t] get over this. He’s probably 175. Like, it just doesn’t make sense to go back to ‘35, for his health, for his longevity. I think there’s certain matchups at ‘45 that he could do good [with]. What about Aljo versus, like, Brian Ortega? That’s a sweet fight.”

Aljamain Sterling reflects on possible move to 145 pounds ' I still feel like I need to be the biggest guy'

Sterling is still considering the move, likely depending on who the UFC offers him, but earlier this month gave an update on where he's at.

“As of right now, my mindset is definitely leaning towards 145, for featherweight. I want to do one more round of testing on my own. ... Psychologically, I still feel like I need to be the biggest guy because that’s just what I did at bantamweight, what I’ve done as a wrestler. Psychologically, I need to make sure I’m going to be OK where I know that when I step in there, I feel comfortable, confident that I can win and I can compete with guys in that weight class.”